Diabetes: Using a food guide

Introduction

A food guide is a tool for planning a
balanced diet. A healthy diet provides the nutrients your body needs and
decreases your risk for heart disease and other conditions. Many people use the
MyPyramid guide to plan a healthy diet.

Key points

People with
diabetes can use a modified version of MyPyramid to
help them spread the amount of
carbohydrate they eat throughout the day.

A food guide contains the same foods your family eats. You do
not have to eat special foods.

You can successfully follow this
method by:

Planning your family meals ahead of time
so you can enjoy the same foods as other family members.

Providing
lots of variety in the foods you eat so it's easier to follow your
plan.

Testing your blood sugar after meals to see what effect
different foods have on your blood sugar level.

Women with diabetes who are pregnant or
breast-feeding need the same nutrition as pregnant or breast-feeding women who
do not have diabetes. Pregnant women need more of all nutrients, but they
especially need iron and folic acid and should get supplements of these. During
the second and third trimester, you also need about 300 calories a day more
than you did before pregnancy. Regular meals and snacks are important to
prevent low blood sugar during pregnancy and breast-feeding. Talk to your
registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator about changes you may need
to make to your food plan.

Test Your Knowledge

A food guide for people with diabetes is not
used to record your daily food intake. The correct answer is c. A food guide is
a tool for meal planning for diabetes. It is slightly different from the
MyPyramid guide recommended for people who do not have diabetes. This is
because people with diabetes need to pay close attention to the amount of
carbohydrate in their diet.

A food guide for people with diabetes is not
used to choose special foods. The correct answer is c. A food guide is a tool
for meal planning for diabetes. It is slightly different from the MyPyramid
guide recommended for people who do not have diabetes. This is because people
with diabetes need to pay close attention to the amount of carbohydrate in
their diet.

A food guide is a tool for meal planning for
diabetes. It is slightly different from the MyPyramid guide recommended for
people who do not have diabetes. This is because people with diabetes need to
pay close attention to the amount of carbohydrate in their diet.

A food guide is not used to develop an exchange
list. The correct answer is c. A food guide is a tool for meal planning for
diabetes. It is slightly different from the MyPyramid guide recommended for
people who do not have diabetes. This is because people with diabetes need to
pay close attention to the amount of carbohydrate in their diet.

One of the advantages of using a food guide for people
with diabetes is that you can eat the same food as everyone else in your
family.

Carbohydrate is
the nutrient that most affects your blood sugar level. The more carbohydrate
you eat at one time, the higher your blood sugar level will rise. Spreading
carbohydrate intake throughout the day helps keep your blood sugar levels
within your target range. A food guide for diabetes can help you plan your diet
accordingly.

Eating the recommended number of servings from each
food group every day gives you the proper amount of nutrients to meet your
needs and reduces your risk for
heart disease and other conditions. Eating regular
meals can help you spread carbohydrate intake throughout the day.

Test Your Knowledge

A food guide does not list special foods you
should eat. You do not need to eat special foods if you have diabetes. The
correct answer is c. A food guide helps you plan meals and snacks to spread
carbohydrate throughout the day.

A food guide does not outline the way to count
nutrients in your diet. It is a guide for planning a balanced diet for people
with diabetes. The correct answer is c. A food guide helps you spread
carbohydrate throughout the day.

Eat regular meals

Eat 4 to 6 smaller meals and
snacks throughout the day to spread your intake of food throughout the day.
Plan several meals at a time. Plan to double some recipes and freeze the
leftovers to use for other meals. Reuse menu plans.

Plan meals to include
food from all the groups. A registered dietitian can help you plan the food
groups to include in each meal and snack.

Breakfast usually includes food from the
milk, fruit, and grains food groups. Meat and vegetables also may be eaten at
breakfast.

Lunch and dinner usually include foods from most or all
food groups.

Snacks may include only one or two food groups
(usually a fruit or bread).

Milk and milk products are a separate
group. If you don't like or can't drink milk, you will need to find a way to
add to your diet more
calcium,
vitamin D, and other
nutrients that milk provides. Talk with a registered
dietitian about how to get enough calcium and other nutrients. If you are
pregnant, you need extra calcium and may need to take supplements.

Eat standard portions. Sometimes what you may
consider a serving is much larger than the recommended serving size. For
example, if you eat a plateful of spaghetti (about 2 cups), you have eaten 6
servings from the grain group in a food guide. It's easy to eat more servings
from a food group than are recommended for a balanced diet. You don't always
need to measure and weigh the food you eat, but it may be helpful when you are
first learning what makes a standard portion. It can also be helpful to know
what a serving size looks like.

Other suggestions

Other suggestions for helping
you be successful in using a food guide include:

Checking your blood sugar level before and 1 to 2
hours after a meal to see how food affects your blood
sugar.

Recording what you eat on a food record form. Review your
record with your registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator at each
visit and whenever you think your plan needs adjusting. See an example of a
food record form(What is a PDF document?)
.

Getting more help. The American Diabetes Association has
information and a poster on the food guide for people with diabetes. See the
Where to Go From Here section below for the address, phone number, and Web site
of the American Diabetes Association. But you will still need to talk with a
registered dietitian to set up a plan that fits your needs.

Test Your Knowledge

How many of the food groups are in a breakfast
containing 2 ounces cold cereal, 8 ounces 1% milk, and 4 ounces orange juice?
(You may need to review the food groups in a guide for
diabetes.)

The breakfast (2 ounces cold cereal, 8 ounces
1% milk, and 4 ounces orange juice) contains food from the grain and milk
groups as well as the fruit group. The correct answer is b. The breakfast
contains food from the grain, milk, and fruit groups.

How many servings from each food group are in a
breakfast containing 2 ounces cold cereal, 8 ounces 1% milk, and 4 ounces
orange juice? (You may need to review the
food groups in a guide for diabetes.)

The breakfast does not contain 1 grain, 2 milk,
and 1 fruit. The correct answer is b. The breakfast contains 2 grains, 1 milk,
and 1 fruit. Review the serving sizes in food groups in a guide for diabetes if
you are having trouble with this question.

The breakfast does not contain 3 grains, 1
milk, and 2 fruits. The correct answer is b. The breakfast contains 2 grains, 1
milk, and 1 fruit. Review the serving sizes in food groups in a guide for
diabetes if you are having trouble with this question.

If you have questions about this information, take it with you when you
visit your registered dietitian or certified diabetes educator. He or she can
explain a food guide for diabetes and help you plan meals.

If you would like more information on meal planning for
people with diabetes, the following resource is available:

Organization

American Diabetes Association (ADA)

1701 North Beauregard Street

Alexandria, VA 22311

Phone:

1-800-DIABETES (1-800-342-2383)

E-mail:

AskADA@diabetes.org

Web Address:

www.diabetes.org

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) is a national organization
for health professionals and consumers. Almost every state has a local office.
ADA sets the standards for the care of people with diabetes. Its focus is on
research for the prevention and treatment of all types of diabetes. ADA
provides patient and professional education mainly through its publications,
which include the monthly magazine Diabetes Forecast,
books, brochures, cookbooks and meal planning guides, and pamphlets. ADA also
provides information for parents about caring for a child with diabetes.

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